Questions And Answers

Can you tell me about ESD shoes? I'm in manufacturing department. All personnel wear ESD smog. The floor is 100% ESD mat all over. If I have 100% ESD chair and shoes, do I still need to wear wrist strap or Foot strap? If an operator rest his/her feet on the chair resting arm, it would still ground isn't it? What is your solution for this? -Anonymous

Answer

There are many manufacturers of ESD Shoes. If you are looking for ESD shoes, you will want to consider a pair that has RTG measurements between 1 megohm and 10 megohm for the new floor-footwear ESD Association standard ESD S97.1. If an operator is wearing conductive footwear or foot grounders and they are working off an ESD chair, it is highly recommended that they wear a wrist strap. Not all ESD Chairs are adequately grounded and or non-tribocharging. Even when properly grounded, they do not ensure that the operator is also at ground potential. A properly worn and grounded wrist strap will give you this confidence.